Review: Pandemonium by Lauren Oliver

Pandemonium (Delirium #2)
by Lauren Oliver

Genre: Dystopia, Fantasy, Romance, Young Adult
Publication: February 5th, 2013 by HarperCollins
Format: Paperback, 375 pages
Source: Own
Connect: Website | Twitter | Facebook

The old life is dead.

But the old Lena is dead too.

I buried her.

I left her beyond a fence, behind a wall of smoke and flame.

In this electrifying follow-up to her acclaimed New York Times bestseller Delirium, Lauren Oliver sets Lena on a dangerous course that hurtles through the unregulated Wilds and into the heart of a growing resistance movement. This riveting, brilliant novel crackles with the fire of fierce defiance, forbidden romance, and the sparks of a revolution about to ignite.

Just like the first book, Pandemonium has been a bit  slow for my liking. The alternating scene between 'Now' and 'Then' was a bit confusing at first, making it hard for me to get into the book. 

I like the first book, but I had a mixed thought about Pandemonium. I love that Pandemonium focused more on the Resistance. I enjoyed reading about them and how and what they did to survive in the woods. However, there are some scenes that I felt a bit draggy and some are unnecessary. Pandemonium also focused on Lena's character's growth after what happened between her and Alex at the end of Delirium. I wasn't a fan of Lena at the beginning, just like in Delirium. But it was interesting to see how she got stronger. But what put me off the book was Julian. And the ending! It was very predictable, and I'm not a fan of where the story was heading to.

Overall, Pandemonium was an okay read. Lauren Oliver writing was beautiful and that was one of the reasons I wanted to read her book. I have to say that I'm not really looking forward to read Requiem, but I'm still curious about what will happen to the characters next. And I hope Requiem will answer some of my questions regarding the disease.

Review: The Testing by Joelle Charbonneau

The Testing (The Testing #1)
by Joelle Charbonneau

Genre: Adventure, Dystopia, Young Adult
Publication: June, 2013
Format: ebook, 336 pages
Source: Own
Connect: Website | Twitter | Facebook

Who will be chosen to lead? The best...the brightest...the deadliest? There will be a testing. In the wake of the Seven Stages War, the government of the Unified Commonwealth devised The Testing to assess the instinct, intellect and sheer nerve among a select group of the population's young people. Candidates who pass, attend the University to become leaders of the Commonwealth; civilization's hope to transform a post-war wasteland into a peaceful and technologically advanced society. But progress comes at a price. Mechanically-inclined Cia Vale is honored to be chosen as a candidate but on the eve of her departure, her father confides partial memories of his grisly experience as a candidate, still haunted by nightmares and living in fear of what he can't remember. It's not enough to pass the test, Cia will have to survive it "and "her deadly fellow candidates. To stay alive Cia will have to learn who she can trust and, if necessary, who she must kill.

Cia Vale was happy to be chosen for The Testing so that she can go to the University. No one knows much about The Testing. Even Cia’s father, a graduate, didn’t remember much about the test. But once Cia was chosen for the test, he told her about his nightmares and warned Cia to be really careful. 

The Testing by Joelle Charbonneau reminds me of the Hunger Games, and I’m sure a lot of readers had compared the two books. I love this book. Once I read it, I just couldn’t stop until I find out what was going to happen next. I think that the testing parts were very exciting. I enjoyed reading about what the government had prepared for the test.

Cia, the main character was great. She’s humble and intelligent. Although did sound a little too perfect. It was like she had a six sense to get everything right. I wished that there were more interaction between Cia and the other characters, because I would love to know them as well. 

But still, The Testing was written brilliantly. I just can’t wait to see what will happen next to Cia and the others in the next book!

Review: Thunder by Bonnie S. Calhoun

Thunder (Stone Braide Chronicles #1)
by Bonnie S. Calhoun

Genre: Adventure, Dystopia, Fantasy, Young Adult
Publication: September 30th, 2014
Format: ebook, 432 pages
Source: Netgalley
Connect: Facebook | Twitter

In post-apocalyptic America, Selah Chavez is crouched in long grass on a shore littered with the rusted metal remnants of a once-great city. It is the day before her eighteenth Born Remembrance, and she is hunting, though many people refuse to eat animal flesh, tainted by radiation during the Time of Sorrows. What Selah's really after are Landers, mysterious people from a land across the big water who survive the delirium-inducing passage in small boats that occasionally crash against the shoreline. She knows she should leave the capture to the men, but Landers bring a good price from the Company and are especially prized if they keep the markings they arrive with.

Everything falls to pieces when the Lander Selah catches is stolen by her brothers--and Selah wakes up the next morning to find the Lander's distinctive mark has suddenly appeared on her own flesh. Once the hunter, Selah is now one of the hunted, and she knows only one person who can help her--Bohdi Locke, the Lander her brothers hope to sell.

With evocative descriptions of a strange new world that combines elements of scientific advances, political intrigue, and wilderness survival, Bonnie S. Calhoun weaves a captivating tale of a world more like our own than we may want to admit.

On the day before her eighteenth Born Remembrance, Selah Chavez went hunting and found a Lander. She captured the Lander for money, but her capture was stolen by her brothers. When Selah woke up the next morning, she saw the Lander’s mark on her, forcing her mother to tell her the truth about who she really was. Now, Selah must run from her former life, if she wanted to live. And the person who can help her was Bodhi, the Lander she had caught.

I thought that Thunder by Bonnie S. Calhoun had a promising start. I do like the idea of the book. The plot sounds good. And Selah can be a good character, even though she can be childish at times. But the story was a bit too slow and too long to my likings. The plot was a bit messy. It was a bit confusing at times and I was not sure what was going on. I have to reread a few scenes a few times to understand what was going on. There was supposed to be a bit of romance between Selah and Bodhi, but I thought that the romance was going on too fast. There wasn’t much attraction between them, except for physical attraction. It was kinda disappointing, but, I’m sure that the book could have been better with more editing.

I received the copy of the book through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Review: The Elite by Kiera Cass

The Elite (The Selection #2)
by Kiera Cass

Genre: Dystopia, Fantasy, Romance, Young Adult
Publication: April 2013 by HarperTeen
Format: Paperback, 323 pages
Source: Own
Connect: Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads

Thirty-five girls came to the palace to compete in the Selection. All but six have been sent home. And only one will get to marry Prince Maxon and be crowned princess of Iléa.

America still isn’t sure where her heart lies. When she’s with Maxon, she’s swept up in their new and breathless romance, and can’t dream of being with anyone else. But whenever she sees Aspen standing guard around the palace, and is overcome with memories of the life they planned to share. With the group narrowed down to the Elite, the other girls are even more determined to win Maxon over—and time is running out for America to decide.

Just when America is sure she’s made her choice, a devastating loss makes her question everything again. And while she’s struggling to imagine her future, the violent rebels that are determined to overthrow the monarchy are growing stronger and their plans could destroy her chance at any kind of happy ending.

The Elite by Kiera Cass is the second book from The Selection series. I didn't really like the first book, but I wanted to give this series another chance. I wanted to see America matured just a little bit. I wanted to know more about the rebel. I mean, the series does have a good premise. But after a few pages into the book, I was disappointed. Mostly with America. I didn't like her character. She can't make up her mind and she sounded very selfish in this book. The only scene that made me like America a little bit was the part where she defended her friend in public. But that was it. 

I was really happy when the rebel made their appearance, even though just for a little while. I was hoping to see more of them. I wanted to know why they rebelled against the kingdom. Will I read the next book of the selection, The One? I might. I have to admit that I have mixed feelings about this series. I didn't like the characters and plot, but I still wanted to find out what happen at the end. I wanted to know the kingdom's history. It would be really interesting. I just hope that The One would be slightly better than The Elite.

Review: Delirium by Lauren Oliver

Delirium (Delirium #1)
by Lauren Oliver

Genre:  Dystopia, Fantasy, Romance, Young Adult
Publication: February 2011
Format: Paperback, 441 pages
Author:  Website, Twitter, Facebook, Goodreads

They say that the cure for Love will make me happy and safe forever.

And I've always believed them. Until now. Now everything has changed.

Now, I'd rather be infected with love for the tiniest sliver of a second than live a hundred years smothered by a lie.

Lena looks forward to receiving the government-mandated cure that prevents the delirium of love and leads to a safe, predictable, and happy life, until ninety-five days before her eighteenth birthday and her treatment, when she falls in love.

This book has been sitting on my shelf for quite some times. I wanted to read Delirium for its positive reviews and beautiful cover (although my sister finds it a bit creepy). But I was hesitant to read the book because of the thickness. I was worried that I wouldn’t like it so much and I would be tortured to finish the book. I’m glad that I didn’t feel that way. Haha.

In Delirium, love is considered as a disease. The heroine, Lena was supposed to go through an assessment before a procedure to cure her from deliria disease. But days before her procedure, Lena met Alex and she fell in love.

Delirium pace was a little bit slow to my liking. I had a hard time getting into the book at the beginning where we were introduced to the disease. I just couldn’t grasp the idea where love is considered as a terrible disease. Really?  But I started to like the book a little more towards the end. Like any of the readers, I liked Hana more than Lena. Hana sounded much stronger than Lena. I liked her personality. But after a while, I began to like Lena a little more bit when she grew up and decided to fight back. But then, the story ended with a cliffhanger…

Overall, Delirium was quite a nice book on forbidden love. I do think that Lauren Oliver’s writing is beautiful. Even though I didn’t really like how Lauren Oliver ended the book with a cliffhanger, I had a feeling that the next book, Pandemonium would be much better than Delirium.  I’m looking forward to read the continuation.

Review: Blood Red Road by Moira Young

Blood Red Road (Dust Lands #1)
by Moira Young


Genre: Adventure, Fantasy, Romance, Young Adult
Publication: August 1st 2011
Format: Paperback, 459 pages
Author: Twitter, Facebook

Saba has spent her whole life in Silverlake, a dried-up wasteland ravaged by constant sandstorms. The Wrecker civilization has long been destroyed, leaving only landfills for Saba and her family to scavenge from. That's fine by her, as long as her beloved twin brother Lugh is around. But when a monster sandstorm arrives, along with four cloaked horsemen, Saba's world is shattered. Lugh is captured, and Saba embarks on an epic quest to get him back.

Suddenly thrown into the lawless, ugly reality of the world outside of desolate Silverlake, Saba is lost without Lugh to guide her. So perhaps the most surprising thing of all is what Saba learns about herself: she's a fierce fighter, an unbeatable survivor, and a cunning opponent. And she has the power to take down a corrupt society from the inside. Teamed up with a handsome daredevil named Jack and a gang of girl revolutionaries called the Free Hawks, Saba stages a showdown that will change the course of her own civilization.

Blood Red Road has a searing pace, a poetically minimal writing style, violent action, and an epic love story. Moira Young is one of the most promising and startling new voices in teen fiction.

Blood Red Road tell a story of Saba who have been living in Silverlake with her family—Lugh, her twin brother, Emmi, her younger sister and their father. It all changed when a monster sandstorm arrives along with four horsemen. Her brother, Lugh, was captured and her father died. Saba went on a journey with Emmi and vowed to go after Lugh to get him back.

The truth is, I was afraid to read Blood Red Road by Moira Young. I was afraid that I was going to be disappointed what with the book been compared to The Hunger Games. It was hard to get into Blood Red Road at first with the dialect I’m not really familiar with. But after a while, I was hooked. I love the pace of the story. There were some slow, and some exciting moments. There were moments that make me laugh, smile, frustrated and thrilled to know what will happen to Saba next.

I loved Saba. She’s one of the strong female lead. She had a terrible temper and didn’t care about others other than Lugh. She wasn’t perfect.  I had fun watching her transformation—how she grew up and changed after her meetings with the gang of girls who called the Free Hawks and the handsome Jack. Saba slowly warmed up to others and developed her relationship with Emmi, Jack and her new friends. Most of all, I enjoyed her interaction with Jack and how her relationship with Emmi improved.

I didn’t expect that I would really enjoy this book! Blood Red Road was filled with action, suspense, drama, and a little bit of romance. I enjoyed Saba and her friend’s adventure. I am looking forward to see what will happen to Saba in the sequel.

Review: Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi

Shatter Me (Shatter Me #1)

by Tahereh Mafi

Genre:  Dystopia, Fantasy, Paranormal, Romance, Young Adult

Publication: October 2012 by HarperCollins

Format: Paperback, 340 pages

Author:  Website, Twitter, Facebook

I have a curse. I have a gift. I'm a monster. I'm more than human.My touch is lethal. My touch is power. I am their weapon. I will fight back.

No one knows why Juliette's touch is fatal, but The Reestablishment has plans for her. Plans to use her as a weapon. But Juliette has plans of her own. After a lifetime without freedom, she's finally discovering a strength to fight back for the very first time--and to find a future with the one boy she thought she'd lost forever.In this electrifying debut, Tahereh Mafi presents a riveting dystopian world, a thrilling superhero story, and an unforgettable heroine.

I’m not really sure what I felt about this book. I didn’t dislike it, but I don’t really enjoy it either. Shatter Me is a story of Juliette, who was imprison because of her power—her touch can be fatal. Her life gradually changed when she was given a cellmate, a boy named Adam. Juliette soon founds out that the reestablishment has plans to use her power as their weapon.

I was intrigued by Tahereh Mafi’s writing style at first. It was interesting to see how Juliette’s unwanted thought got crossed out. Tahereh Mafi’s way with words is unique. But then I got impatient and slowly got annoyed with the writing style. The story pace is a little bit slow to my liking. I think the story finally caught my interest again once it got to the very last page. Why? Because Juliette in my opinion, sounds like a weak heroine. It wasn’t until the last page that I feel that she has gotten a bit stronger.

Overall, Shatter Me is an okay book. Like I said, I didn’t really enjoy it. But still, I will be checking out the next book of the series because I wanted to see how ready and stronger Juliette has become.